At first glance, Psalms 115:4 seems to say nothing but the blindingly obvious: “Their idols are silver and gold; the work of human hands.” But Rabbi Pesach Wolicki tells David Nekrutman that King David uses a surprising term for “idol” which changes everything; that instead of repeating something we already know, he is teaching something important about human trust, toil, expectation, and disappointment. What does this have to do with United States currency? Leave it to David and Rabbi Wolicki to figure it out.

Did King David know how to write properly?! Because most translators act as if he made a simple mistake in composing Psalms 115:3! But instead of “correcting G-d’s grammar,” Rabbi Pesach Wolicki shows that the apparent glitch in G-d’s word actually points to a deep and powerful lesson about why G-d created with speech rather than with action. Along with David Nekrutman, they discuss the fallacy of translators who clean up inconsistencies, instead of using them to discover the incredible depths contained within. (And don’t miss the special Memorial Day message that opens the podcast.)

In Psalms 115:2, King David, somewhat echoing Moses after the episode of the Golden Calf, seems concerned for G-d’s reputation. Why should G-d care about what people think about Him? Are Moses, King David, and the People of Israel supposed to act as G-d’s personal public relations agents? Join hosts David Nekrutman and Rabbi Pesach Wolicki for a discussion of this topic, along with a crucial interpretation of G-d’s appearance in history – all based on the inclusion of the two-letter Hebrew word for “now” in the verse.

Christians and Jews have spent millenia debating whether G-d’s promises to Abraham were contingent upon Israel’s good behavior, or whether they would take place no matter what. In this episode of the Cup of Salvation podcast, hosts David Nekrutman and Rabbi Pesach Wolicki take a close look at what Scripture itself says about this debate, and why so many Christians are reevaluating their own theology in the light of the State of Israel’s miraculous existence and success. They also talk about the importance of a single letter in the Hebrew original, and – for good measure – explain why spring training is, in baseball terms, “fake news.” You don’t want to miss this exceptional pre-Passover episode!

In a choice of ending a psalm between two miracles – water from a rock or the splitting of the sea – it would make sense to go the Charlton Heston route. Save the best for last! However, Psalm 114 concludes its miracle performances with water from a rock. Not too shabby, but not a movie like performance… Join hosts David Nekrutman and Rabbi Pesach Wolicki as they address this issue, and in so doing offer a template to understand the nature of the miraculous, including the reason that the modern State of Israel is truly a miracle of Biblical proportions.

Psalms 114:7 describes the Lord as the “God of Jacob” – a phrase which appears only nine times in the Hebrew Bible, and all of them from the pen of King David. When does David use this term to describe God, instead of the more typical, “God of Israel”? What is the meaning of the name “Jacob”? How does that meaning describe his life experience? And, finally, what do the answers to the previous questions tell us about the relationship between God and His chosen people?